Hints to clean old easel blades....

[hoganlia]

Hi folks... super hot here in my part of the world (38ºC in the shade this afternoon)... not darkroom-friendly at all, so I am developing and working my way through the "I must get around to..." list.

I was given an elderly 40x50cm Meopta easel a while back. A very solid and tempting option which in general is in good shape. The blades however are rather stiff and difficult to adjust. (So far I have been tapping gently with a wooden kitchen tenderizer) I don't think they are rusty but I would like to ease them up if I can without damaging them or using cleaning products which I am later going to regret. They don't have clamps or springs to ease their purchase.... just nice, solid mid-european People's Republic of It's This and Nothing More Are You Complaining? technology.

Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance as always.

Joe

 

[Don_ih]

Clean it with an oily rag to lubricate it slightly? Hard to offer a suggestion without knowing what it looks like.

 

[hoganlia]

Clean it with an oily rag to lubricate it slightly? Hard to offer a suggestion without knowing what it looks like.

how do I upload a photo here?

 

[bdial]

how do I upload a photo here?

click on the little picture icon at top of the reply block, it will let you drag and drop a picture from your computer, or you can copy and paste into the reply.

As for cleaning, for things like easels, that need just slight lubrication, I like paste wax, it has some solvents, so it can loosen old grime, then it leaves a smooth slick surface.

 

[MattKing]

click on the little picture icon at top of the reply block, it will let you drag and drop a picture from your computer, or you can copy and paste into the reply.

The uploader is a bit finicky. If the file is big, re-size it down to a jpeg with 1000 pixels on the long dimension first.

 

[hoganlia]

 

[hoganlia]

click on the little picture icon at top of the reply block, it will let you drag and drop a picture from your computer, or you can copy and paste into the reply.

As for cleaning, for things like easels, that need just slight lubrication, I like paste wax, it has some solvents, so it can loosen old grime, then it leaves a smooth slick surface.

The uploader is a bit finicky. If the file is big, re-size it down to a jpeg with 1000 pixels on the long dimension first.

Thanks to both of you.... the uploader is a lot easier than some of the forums I have been in... Spain's Canonistas is a disaster.

OK... there is cosmetic rust which I would like to clean off if I can but no evident rtust that is causing the bloackage... probably most "dust and grit". The slider in the second photo I think is supposed to elevate a little with upward pressue, not squeezing like many. I presume I will need some sort of oil or lubricant as Don.ih mentioned in his reply but I am not sure which sort... I don't want minimal residues causing problems with paper or anythng

Anyway, the easel itself is extremely solid and the blades sit completely flat (better than the LPL that I am currently using..). I also much prefer the border adjustment mechanism whic is so basic nut effective that I have no isdea why all easels are built this way. The other reason I want to use this is that I would love to try some larger paper... I have a Meopta Opemus 6 enlarger and so far I have used only 5x7 and 8x10 papers....

once again, thanks to all

Joe